Discovering Beauty...

Beauty. What is it? What makes something beautiful? Is it relative to the eye of the beholder? Is it unchanging? How is it created? What defines a piece of art as beautiful?
 

These questions have been running through my head for a while now, and I'm still on the quest to find the answers, but I thought writing out a bit of my two cents would help. :)

First: What is beauty? I think beauty is something that pleases the senses to a degree that ignites awe or inspiration. It is inseparable from truth.
 

Something that is beautiful gives us a sense of recognition or joy. It speaks remembrance to the divine nature inside each of us, and almost whispers a memory of our heavenly home. I think that's what transcendent beauty is. True beauty speaks to the soul.
 

I believe that some are more in tune to see different parts beauty than others. There are different degrees of beauty -like there are different degrees of light- but different people can see different aspects of that beauty depending on the work they put into it. For example: someone who has more experience in the art of cello playing can recognize the beauty of an accomplished cellist more than, say, me - who has no experience in that art. The beauty is still there, unchanging, but someone who has put effort into something will see the beauty in it more than someone who hasn't worked on that thing.
     

We are all gods in embryo: in training, so to speak. I think we can create beauty to a degree.
God is the only creator of pure beauty-beauty absolute. If we want to create something truly beautiful, we should learn from the master. :)